Stress and The Immune System
Are you a key worker still working while the rest of the world isolates at home?
Do you work for the NHS caring for those who desperately need you at this time?
Are you a care-worker looking after our elderly population or others in need?
Are you a midwife attending births, keeping women and babies safe?
Are you a social worker looking after the always vulnerable?
Are you in the police force keeping law and order?
Do you work in a food retail outlet or somewhere in the food supply chain?
Do you drive around the country keeping us supplied with what we need?
Or a refuse collector keeping our streets clean and emptying our bins?
Are you a cleaner keeping our hospitals and care homes spotlessly clean?
A teacher still teaching so that our doctors, nurses and surgeons can keep working?
Are you a postal worker delivering to us daily?
Are you a supplier of protective equipment?
Do you work in transport keeping our network running for those who need to get to work?
Are you a tradesperson building new hospitals?
Are you feeling stressed as you are especially vulnerable at this time?
Are you stressed out by work or the current situation you find yourself in?
If you answered yes to any of these, then my latest recording is for you; with my compliments. Listen to it every day if you can.
Boost Your Immune System
It is designed to boost your immune system, help you to change your response to stress, to feel better and sleep soundly. This stuff really works! Don’t take my word for it, read what Andrew Goliszek Ph.D said in Psychology Today about stress and the immune system:
“Mind over matter” is not simply a catchphrase. It is a truth based on what we know to be fact: that the brain, given the right set of directions, the right environment, and the proper stimuli, will always choose healing over disease.
Fending off Illness
The ability to fend off illness and disease depends on several factors, some of which are beyond our control, but the way we react to stress and the general health of our immune system are things we can influence. If we’re not able to change our response to stressors, we’ll find ourselves in a constant hormonal battle that will lead to serious health issues like hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease. The brain and the immune system are in constant communication in this delicate balance that can be disrupted by any kind of physical or emotional stress.
Ongoing Stress
Ongoing stress makes us susceptible to illness and disease because the brain sends defence signals to the endocrine system, which then releases an array of hormones that not only gets us ready for emergency situations but severely depresses our immunity at the same time. Some experts claim that stress is responsible for as much as 90% of all illnesses and diseases, including cancer and heart disease.
Chemical Reaction
The way it does this is by triggering chemical reactions and flooding the body with cortisol that, among other things, decreases inflammation, decreases white blood cells and NK cells (special cells that kill cancer), increases tumour development and growth, and increases the rate of infection and tissue damage.
Mind-Body Therapies
Because the effects of stress are cumulative, even ordinary, day-to-day activities can eventually lead to more serious health issues. So it’s important to be aware of the simple daily stress in our lives. Some of the mind-body therapies that help reverse that are:
- Relaxation exercises. Because the link between the mind and body can be strengthened by specific relaxation exercises such as meditation and guided imagery. By making them a normal part of our lives, they become a buffer that guards against the breakdown of organ systems.
- Positive Thinking. Evidence shows that people who believe they are doing better actually do better than those who have the same physical condition but aren’t as positive. Research also suggests that anxiety, hostility, and other negative states affect the immune system.
- Behaviour Modification techniques. Changing how we act can often break habits that trigger stress reactions.
- Social support. According to researchers, people with strong social support have better overall health and are more resistant to infection and disease.
Physical and Emotional Stress
The relationship between stress and illness is not a simple one, but there is a connection. Because the endocrine and immune systems are so interrelated, disruption to one due to physical or emotional stress typically causes damage to the other. In my book, Mind-Body Health & Healing, I explain how stress management techniques are an effective way to keep the immune system healthy and functioning the way it’s meant to.
By Andrew Goliszek Ph.D.
To read the original article click here. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/how-the-mind-heals-the-body/201411/how-stress-affects-the-immune-system
Kick off your shoes, put your feet up for 30 mins and relax.
DISCLAIMER: Please do not listen to this MP3 if it is not safe for you to do so. For example, but not limited to, if you have epilepsy, bipolar, are under the influence of alcohol or are on mind altering drugs, either prescription or recreational, have your baby in your arms, and so on. Do not listen to in the car. If in doubt, check with your GP or specialist healthcare provider.